Girls und Panzer das Finale: Part 1
Girls und Panzer das Finale (ガールズ&パンツァー 最終章 第) is the first of a six-part theatrical film series. The series is a sequel to the Girls und Panzer anime series. It was released on December 9th, 2017 in Japan and December 29th, 2017 in Taiwan. The film runs for 47 minutes. The events of the film take place some time after Girls und Panzer der Film. Plot Momo's Dilemma The episode opens with Ooarai's team trapped on a wooden bridge being bombarded by an unknown enemy. We see the view from Momo Kawashima's periscope, which is panning around the frantic situation. After the opening song, the scene steps back some time earlier to where Momo Kawashima is currently in the bridge of the Ooarai carrier. From there, she directs a search to find tanks inside the school carrier to add to the Sensha-dō fleet. Just as she finds an unknown object that is suspected to be a tank, Rabbit Team burst into the bridge, having just heard the news that Momo failed her university admission test. This news apparently has spread throughout schools, evolving into the rumour that "Momo will repeat a year". Everyone then learned that Momo's failed the test because she was busy looking for new tanks for Ooarai prior into joining Winter Continuous Track Cup. Momo intends to make Ooarai as one of the cornerstones of the Sensha-dō league, which would prevent any attempt at closing the school in the future. Moved by Momo's effort, all teams then agreed on making Momo as the new Commander so that upon winning the Continuous Cup, Momo will be able to take AO entrance exams to get into Shimofusadai National University. To accomplish this, Miho Nishizumi also been appointed as Vice-Commander. In order to allow Momo to focus on entrance exams, Anglerfish Team takes up the task of searching for that tank that Momo had located earlier. Accompanied by Sodoko, they descend into an area of the ship that very dangerous: The so-called "Johannesburg of Ooarai" exists in the lowest levels of the ship, a place where even the Morals Committee and Student Council have no power. The dark and shabby area is filled with dubious characters. After Sodoko offends two of the girls in this area, they grab and kidnap her. Anglerfish Team gives chase through the dark and winding corridors until they fall into a seemingly dead-end. However, Yukari Akiyama finds a secret entrance to the place called "Donzoko Bar". Showdown at Donzoko Bar After arriving at Donzoko Bar, the girls learn that Sodoko has been imprisoned and forced to clean rooms by the delinquent gang. After demanding the release of Sodoko and information about the tank's whereabouts, the delinquent gang challenge Anglerfish Team in a series of contents. The first one (Flint) challenges them to untie an Anchor Bend knot, which is accomplished by Yukari Akiyama in seconds. The second one (Rum) challenges them to decipher a semaphore message which their radio operator, Saori Takebe, easily translates as "Everyone should respect your elders at home". The third one (Cutlass) challenges Mako Reizei to a thumb wrestling match, but with iron fingers trained by shifting tank gears, Mako locks down on Cutlass' joint and wins. Growing restless, the fourth one (Murakami) challenges Miho for a brawl fight. Despite not wanting to fight, Miho instinctively evades her countless attacks and even inadvertedly knocks her out. As the tension growing, the gang leader (Ogin) challenges them to a drinking contest with a non-alcoholic pepper-rum called "Habanero Club" which Hana Isuzu accepts. Cultivating her steel-strong focus both as gunner and flower arranger, Hana finally outdrinks Ogin. Admitting their losses, the Gang agrees to release Sodoko, but are reluctant to provide information about the tank whereabouts. Only after learning that Momo's fate is on the line, they then agree to help. It turns out that Momo once covered for them when they were about to be expelled, hence they owe her a great deal. After hearing about the description of tank by Yukari, they reveal that the aforementioned tank is at Donzoko all along, being used as meat smoking machine. Ogin then offers herself and the gang to drive the tank, to repay their favor to Momo. Preparing For The Cup The Winter Continuous Track Cup also attracts some other traditional sensha-do teams as well. With Maho Nishizumi of Kuromorimine departing to college at Niedersächsische Universität in Germany, Kay believes that the Winter Cup will be the showdown between Pravda, St. Gloriana, Ooarai, and Saunders. For Kuromorimine, this will be a test for their new commander, Erika Itsumi. Maho consoles Erika's fears, advising her to find her own sensha-do instead of worrying the result. Darjeeling is looking for victory because this is her last tournament as commander of St. Gloriana before she leaves for college in the UK. Meanwhile, Katyusha is also expecting a victory, since Pravda is good at fighting in winter conditions. The same resolve is also declared by Anzio's commander, Anchovy. Learning from their defeat in Summer Tournament, Chi-Ha-Tan members are determined to gain victory by strengthening their mental fortitude and charging at their enemy, to the frustration of Fukuda and their commander, Kinuyo Nishi. Elsewhere, (in a Sauna) Mika suggests that they rest during winter, and hence pass on the Winter Cup, although Aki wishes to join in order to meet with their friends again (from der Film). It is still unknown whether Jatkosota will be joining or not. Problem of BC Freedom In the bracket draw, Momo as Commander draws the slot against BC Freedom High School in their first match. As a Summer Champion, Ooarai is now being touted as championship contender, while BC Freedom never passed first round, so everyone expects an easy match. Andou and Oshida of BC Freedom argue violently, blaming each other for having to face the Summer Champion in their first round. Strangely, their Commander, Marie, doesn't seem bothered by the fight and cares more about her cake. As BC Freedom has never made it past the first round, Saori cannot find any information about them, so Yukari volunteers herself for another recon mission. Infiltrating the French-themed BC Freedom school carrier, Yukari discovers that BC Freedom's student body is deeply divided between two hostile factions; the Escalator faction and Examination faction. This deep division creates tension among its students which prompts them to often fight against each other. Marie, as Commander, not only care less about this, but also purposely stir up the tension which lead to another brawl fight. Yukari get trapped amidst this fight, but is able to conclude her report and return to Ooarai safely. This leads everyone in Ooarai to believe that BC Freedom would be just as likely to shoot each other as they are at Ooarai in the upcoming Sensha-dō match. The Shark Team On the eve of the match, Ooarai has prepared in the field, but BC Freedom still hasn't showed up. Meanwhile, the delinquent gang, now known as Shark Team, finally arrives to join the rest of Ooarai team with their Mark IV male tank. They're late because they preferred to go by boat than by train. While Rabbit Team fear the appearance of Shark Team, Ogin assures them that although they have mouth of sailors, they really care about their team mates. BC Freedom then arrives 5 minutes before time's up, still ramming and shooting at each other as they drive in. During the pre-match salute, while Andou and Oshida bow back to Momo and Miho, Marie, as Commander, declines to do so, which leads to Andou and Oshida fighting again. Against BC Freedom Ooarai ride in formation to meet BC Freedom forces. They plan on finding and destroying BC Freedom flag tank directly, as opposed to playing too defensive. Despite everyone expecting an easy win thanks to BC Freedom's reputedly divided nature and poor coordination, Miho still errs on the side of caution, advising proper reconnaissance before they commit to an attack. Momo thus sends Duck Team and Leopon Team to scout the enemy. They found that Examination's Somua S35 and Escalator's ARL 44 are both aggressively moving in different directions, which leads everyone believe that both factions are fighting for the glory of being the first to destroy Ooarai's flag tank. Momo deduces that BC Freedom's flag tank is subsequently exposed, with only one tank escorting it. While Momo devises a surprise attack via a bridge to the hill where BC's flag tank lies, Duck Team and Leopon Team continue tailing the movements of the Somua's and ARL's. Upon seeing Ooarai's main column approaching, Marie gives a signal to Andou and Oshida. The last tank each column turns to engage and hold Duck Team and Leopon Team respectively. The rest of the BC tanks charge toward each other in what initially seems like another internal fight, but to the surprise of the spectators, they just pass on each other and each proceed onwards towards a pre-planned location. A Bridge Too Far Noticing how BC's flag tank is very exposed on top of the hill, Momo orders Ooarai's team to cross the wooden bridge and attack directly. However, once all tanks are on the bridge, Sodoko senses something wrong, and notices the enemy in firing position. Whilst Ooarai's tanks are still halfway across the bridge, BC Freedom's columns destroy both ends, trapping Ooarai in the middle. Ooarai's force is then showered with massive bombardments as was seen in the opening scene. Ooarai defends their flag tank and returns fire, while Miho calls for Duck Team and Leopon Team to rush to the site. Just then everyone realize that BC has staged everything for them, including massive brawl fight at their school carrier, just to convince Yukari. Suffering three pronged bombardment on a bridge risks collapsing under the enemy barrages, all hope seems lost. ]] In the dire of a moment, Miho remembers about the Mark IV and devises an escape plan by taking advantage of Mark IV's lengthy profile. She has Momo, as Commander, ask Shark Team to use their tank as a ramp to connect the isolated bridge segment to the riverbank. All Ooarai tanks descend safely, to the surprise and frustration of BC Freedom's commanders. BC Freedom charge, but are too late to stop Ooarai from escaping the kill zone and readying a defensive ring around their flag tank. At that moment, Duck Team and Leopon Team finally arrive, attacking from behind. In danger of being caught between the anvil of Ooarai's main force and the hammer of their reinforcements, BC Freedom retreat on all fronts. After Ooarai regroup, we can see BC's forces marching together as a solid united front, singing ''Le Chant de l'Oignon. Characters Introduced * Flint * Cutlass * Rum * Murakami * Ogin * Marie * Andou * Oshida Main Events * Anzu Kadotani, Yuzu Koyama, and Momo Kawashima all step down from the Student Council. Their successors are Hana Isuzu, Yukari Akiyama, and Saori Takebe. * Momo Kawashima and Miho Nishizumi switch command roles, Momo is made the Commander of Ooarai Sensha-do Team, and Miho the Vice-Commander. *Anzu has become Ooarai Girls Academy Chairman, and Midoriko Sono has left her position as Public Morals Committee president becoming the Committee Adviser. * A new tank has been found: Mark IV male tank. * A new team is introduced: The Shark Team. * Yukari Akiyama goes undercover again. * Ooarai faces BC Freedom High School in the first match of the Winter Continuous Track Cup. Tanks Appearing *PzKpfw IV Ausf.H *SdKfz 138/2 Jagdpanzer 38 'Hetzer' *Type 89B I-Go Otsu *SturmGeschütz III Ausf.F *M3 Lee *Renault Char B1 bis *VK4501 Porsche Tiger *Type 3 Chi-Nu *M4 Sherman * Mark IV Male *Renault FT-17 *ARL 44 *SOMUA S35 *SdKfz 302 Goliath Tracked Mine (Non-combat vehicle) *Sikorsky CH-54 Tarhe (Non-combat vehicle) *NKL-26/42 Aerosan (Non-combat vehicle) *BA-10 Armoured Car (Non-combat vehicle) *Breguet G.11E (Non-combat vehicle) *Kawasaki Ki-78 Ken III (Non-combat vehicle) *Mitsubishi Ki-46-III kai (Non-combat vehicle) *Yokosuka P1Y2S Ginga "Frances" (Non-combat vehicle) *M20 Armored Utility Car (Non-combat vehicle) *Riley Nine Falcon (Non-combat vehicle) *BTR-70 (Non-combat vehicle) *ZiS-5 Truck (Non-combat vehicle) *Ansaldo Lancia 1Z Series 3 (Non-combat vehicle) *Karl-Gerät 040 (Cameo, not participating in the match) *Jagdtiger (Cameo, not participating in the match) *Bell UH-1 Iroquois "Huey" (Non-combat vehicle) Trivia *The title "Johannesburg of Ooarai" is a reference to the city of Johannesburg, South Africa, which was infamous for its high crime rate and many abandoned buildings forming an urban slump area. *In Ooarai's Johannesburg, there is a heavily made-up delinquent with a guitar who usually sticks her tongue out - this is an obvious reference to Gene Simmons of the band KISS whose members who usually, for most performances, stick their tongues out. *The two delinquents that captured Sodoko, are based (hairstyle and face form) on the main villain and his second in command in George Miller's 1979 film Mad Max: Toecutter and Bubba. **Their name Tokata and Baba are the characters' names pronounced in Japanese. *The chase scene is shown from the viewpoint of Mako Reizei. *When introducing themselves to the delinquent gangs, Miho says that she's the commander of the Sensha-do team, although commander of Sensha-do team is currently Momo Kawashima. *When the showdown doesn't go their way, the Delinquent Gang prepares to attack Anglerfish Team using a variety of unique weapons: **Murakami grabs a plastic knife from Pop-up Pirate toy. **Cutlass reveals a barspoon with trident ornament. **Flint uses makeshift brass-knuckles made of three audio jacks. **Rum wields her bottle of rum. **In response Yukari Akiyama prepares a Stielhandgranate. *Ogin and Flint first mention their tank using the term "landship". This is actually the birth name of the tank because the British had first referred to the vehicle as a "Battle Ship on Land". The group charged with the development of the first armored vehicle was known as the Landship Committee, and the final result was the "landship" Mark I. *Rum's rum bottle is labelled CaptainAnneBonny with a Female Pirate on it. This is a reference to Anne Bonny one of the most famous female pirates of all time. *The Habanero Club Pepper Rum that Ogin drinks with Hana is similar in name and design with Havana Club 3 Year Old Rum (the only difference being that the drink shown in the anime is brown whilst the real beverage is white). **To reference the strength of this rum, Mako tests a drop before drinking contest and suffers heavily from its super spicy taste. Many rounds into the subsequent drinking contest, it is shown that she still hasn't recovered from the effects of the single drop, even with Cutlass providing her with a neutralizing drink. *The name of Shark Team's bar "The Donzoko" is a reference to Akira Kurosawa's 1957 film of the same name based on Maxim Gorky's play The Lower Depths. *The victory of Hana against Ogin is depicted by the Panzer IV firing and destroying a pirate ship. **It is possible that the pirate ship was modeled after "Adventure Galley", the ship of Captain Kidd, the famous pirate and privateer from the Golden Age of Piracy. *Maho Nishizumi told Erika Itsumi to find "her own way of Sensha-do". This is reliving the same message she said to her sister, Miho Nishizumi. *Several made-up sayings containing "charge" are shouted by Chi-Ha-Tan sensha-do team members, such as "The bird who charges get the early worms", "Less talking more charging", "A worthy man always charges", etc. **Kinuyo Nishi and Fukuda seem quite frustrated about other members' tendency toward blindly charging. It's possible that they were the only two who learned anything from their previous two co-battles with Ooarai; namely that a reckless charge is futile and will lead to a shameful elimination. *The school carrier of BC Freedom consists of few landmarks from Paris, such as the July Column of Place de la Bastille, Cathedral of Notre Dame, Louvre's Pyramid, Eiffel Tower and Arc de Triomphe. *The "feud" between the Escalator and Examination factions is a reference to the civil wars of France itself throughout its long history. This includes the confrontation between social classes (noble vs peasantry) , religion (Catholic vs Protestant), political/social inclinations (Vichy vs Free French), and even political systems (Socialism vs Parliamentary Monarchy). *Katyusha is riding on Klara while watching the match between Ooarai and BC Freedom. *The gun used to start the match is a Swedish 40mm Bofors AA Gun. *The tank used for the Winter Tournament Poster and Trophy is a Saint-Chamond tank. *Different universities and colleges are mentioned: Ankou University, Konjac Fisheries College, Natto International University, Shimofusadai National University, Niedersächsische Universität (where Maho is going to). *The Karl-Gerät 040 and the Jagdtiger make a cameo during the plane parade in the background next to a Huey helicopter. *Where as in previous matches Miho made use of a conventional map, this time she is seen making use of a Magna Doodle. *Sodoko's "Moral Commitee sense" is a reference to Spider Man's Spider sense, which warns him of upcoming dangers. **Interestingly, this sense failed to notice trap set by Katyusha when Ooarai battled against Pravda in Episode 8. *The reason why Ogin refused to take orders from Miho is perhaps because as a sailor, only the captain able to make a strategic decision. Fortunately, Miho could read the situation well and quickly asked to Momo, who fortunately has more faith in Miho's plans. *The bridge where Ooarai gets trapped bears a striking ressemblance to the River Kwai bridge featured in the film of the same name. Both bridges were destroyed in their respective films. *The name of Ooarai's operation, Hare of Inaba, is a reference to a Japanese myth with two versions: **''Kojiki version'': A prince helps a hare in pain, the hare later revealing his true from as a god and blessing the prince who helped him. **''Ise ga Naru version'': A white hare guides goddess Amaterasu to an appropriate place for a temporary palace. *The ending song presents a chibi Shark Team with their Mark IV. Gallery Momo.png|Momo Kawashima searching for a new tank CaptainBonnyRum.png|Captain Anne Bonny Rum HabaneroClubRum.png|Habanero Pepper Rum Rum's challenge.jpg|Rum challenges Anglerfish Team to decipher a semaphore message KISS.png|I was made for loving you baby ♪ MadGup.png|It seems Mel Gibson didn't hit them hard enough AkiyamaFilm.png|Is Yukari the new George Lucas ??? Training_results.jpg|Anteater Team's training has paid off Saunders_doing_what_Anzio_does_best.jpg|Saunders watching the match St_Gloriana_watching_Ooarai_match.PNG|Always enjoying tea Chi-Ha-Tan_at_Ooarai_match.PNG|Will they learn charging isn't always good? Pravda_watching_Ooarai_match.PNG|Katyusha changed rides Kuro_Mori_Mine_at_Ooarai_match.PNG|Kuromorimine's brass Jatkosota_High_School_at_Ooarai_match.PNG|Mika and her crew Anzio_doing_what_they_do_best.PNG|Anzio doing what they do best Winter_Cup_trophy.PNG|The trophy Judges_about_to_fire_artillery.PNG|Event about to start Federation's_aircraft.png|Federation's aicraft: Kawanishi Ki-78 Ken III Judge's_aicraft.PNG|Judges' aicraft: a Mitsubishi Ki-46-III Kai and two Yokosuka P1Y2-S Gingas KarlFinale.png|Karl-Gerät and Jagdtiger passing by to say hello RiverKwaiBridge.png|On the Bridge of the River Kwai ♪ Category:Episodes Category:Anime